Children’s Social Work Statistics: Child Protection 2023-24
Child Protection Statistics for Scotland for 2023-24 that cover data on children subject to child protection processes.
Please note that the Publication Tables and Additional Tables Excel documents were revised on 8 April 2025. See Contents pages for detail of tables subject to revision.
Please note that Table 1.5 was revised on 10 June 2025. This was to include the 2024 figures in the table, as shown in the Publication Tables Excel document.
Children on the child protection register
On 31 July 2024, 2,129 children were on the child protection register, a 3% increase on the number in 2023 (2,077) and a 26% decrease compared to the same time in 2014 (2,877).
The number of children on the child protection register has been fairly stable over the last three years, following a reduction from 2,877 in 2014 to 2,641 in 2020 before dropping more sharply to 2,119 in 2021 then remaining at around that number in more recent years.
The number of children on the child protection register is slightly higher than it was in the years 2000-2002, but lower than in all other years between 2003 and 2020.
Chart 1: Number of children on the Child Protection Register by age, 2000-2024 [Note 1]
[Note 1] Prior to 2011 figures are as at 31st March. From 2011 onwards figures are as at 31st July.
Of those children on the child protection register, 49% were male, 47% were female, and 4% of children were not yet born. The proportion of children on the register under the age of 5 years was 47%, equal to the proportion in 2023, but lower than 53% in 2014. The proportion of children on the register in 2024 aged 5 years and over was 53%, equal to the proportion in 2023 but up from 47% in 2014.
Table 1.1 Number and percentage of children on the child protection register by sex and age, 31 July 2013-2024 [Note 1]
|
Category |
Subcategory |
2014 Number |
2014 Percentage |
2023 Number |
2023 Percentage |
2024 Number |
2024 Percentage |
|
Sex |
Male |
1,400 |
49% |
975 |
47% |
1,036 |
49% |
|
Sex |
Female |
1,354 |
47% |
994 |
48% |
994 |
47% |
|
Sex |
Unborn |
123 |
4% |
104 |
5% |
93 |
4% |
|
Sex |
Unknown |
0 |
0% |
4 |
0% |
6 |
0% |
|
Age |
Unborn |
123 |
4% |
104 |
5% |
93 |
4% |
|
Age |
0-4 |
1,399 |
49% |
876 |
42% |
913 |
43% |
|
Age |
5-10 |
896 |
31% |
666 |
32% |
696 |
33% |
|
Age |
11-15 |
446 |
16% |
412 |
20% |
383 |
18% |
|
Age |
16+ |
13 |
0% |
18 |
1% |
43 |
2% |
|
Age |
Unknown |
0 |
0% |
1 |
0% |
1 |
0% |
|
Total |
Total |
2,877 |
100% |
2,077 |
100% |
2,129 |
100% |
[Note 1] Some totals may not exactly equal the sum of their parts due to the effects of rounding.
On 31 July 2024, Scotland’s rate per 1,000 children (0-17 years) on the Child Protection Register was 2.1 The rate of children on the register ranged between 0.6 per 1,000 in East Renfrewshire to 4.1 per 1,000 in North Ayrshire.
Table 1.2 Number and rate per 1,000 children on the Child Protection Register by local authority, 31 July 2013-2024 [Note 1], [Note 2], [Note 5]
|
Local Authority |
2014 Number |
2014 Rate p/1,000 (0-17 years) |
2023 Number |
2023 Rate p/1,000 (0-17 years) |
2024 Number |
2024 Rate p/1,000 (0-17 years) [Note 1] |
|
Aberdeen City |
73 |
1.9 |
112 |
2.7 |
100 |
2.4 |
|
Aberdeenshire |
68 |
1.2 |
99 |
1.8 |
84 |
1.5 |
|
Angus |
116 |
5.2 |
34 |
1.6 |
45 |
2.2 |
|
Argyll and Bute |
21 |
1.4 |
29 |
2.0 |
33 |
2.3 |
|
City of Edinburgh |
313 |
3.7 |
89 |
1.0 |
113 |
1.3 |
|
Clackmannanshire |
47 |
4.6 |
15 |
1.5 |
24 |
2.4 |
|
Dumfries and Galloway |
112 |
4.2 |
43 |
1.7 |
51 |
2.0 |
|
Dundee City |
67 |
2.5 |
42 |
1.6 |
68 |
2.5 |
|
East Ayrshire |
49 |
2.1 |
69 |
3.0 |
79 |
3.5 |
|
East Dunbartonshire |
43 |
2.1 |
31 |
1.4 |
22 |
1.0 |
|
East Lothian |
67 |
3.1 |
38 |
1.7 |
28 |
1.2 |
|
East Renfrewshire |
36 |
1.8 |
10 |
0.4 |
13 |
0.6 |
|
Falkirk |
85 |
2.7 |
82 |
2.7 |
88 |
2.9 |
|
Fife |
230 |
3.2 |
96 |
1.4 |
130 |
1.9 |
|
Glasgow City |
482 |
4.4 |
315 |
2.9 |
260 |
2.4 |
|
Highland |
106 |
2.4 |
128 |
3.0 |
116 |
2.8 |
|
Inverclyde |
26 |
1.7 |
34 |
2.5 |
41 |
3.0 |
|
Midlothian |
54 |
2.9 |
67 |
3.2 |
65 |
3.1 |
|
Moray |
45 |
2.4 |
32 |
1.8 |
66 |
3.7 |
|
Na h-Eileanan Siar |
6 |
1.2 |
3 |
0.7 |
8 |
1.8 |
|
North Ayrshire |
107 |
4.0 |
78 |
3.2 |
100 |
4.1 |
|
North Lanarkshire |
79 |
1.1 |
89 |
1.3 |
104 |
1.5 |
|
Orkney Islands |
6 |
1.5 |
9 |
2.3 |
15 |
3.8 |
|
Perth and Kinross |
61 |
2.2 |
49 |
1.8 |
46 |
1.7 |
|
Renfrewshire |
78 |
2.3 |
84 |
2.5 |
78 |
2.3 |
|
Scottish Borders |
16 |
0.7 |
40 |
2.0 |
50 |
2.4 |
|
Shetland Islands |
19 |
3.9 |
20 |
4.3 |
17 |
3.6 |
|
South Ayrshire |
91 |
4.5 |
43 |
2.2 |
25 |
1.3 |
|
South Lanarkshire |
175 |
2.8 |
110 |
1.7 |
97 |
1.5 |
|
Stirling |
62 |
3.5 |
40 |
2.4 |
43 |
2.5 |
|
West Dunbartonshire |
41 |
2.3 |
57 |
3.4 |
56 |
3.3 |
|
West Lothian |
96 |
2.5 |
90 |
2.3 |
64 |
1.7 |
|
Scotland |
2,877 |
2.8 |
2,077 |
2.0 |
2,129 |
2.1 |
[Note 1] Rate per 1,000 children for 2024 is calculated using NRS mid 2023 estimates (0-17 years). Rates may vary slightly from previous publications due to updated Mid Year Population Estimates.
[Note 2] The rate shown in this table includes unborn children who are on the register.
[Note 5] Rate p/1,000 for years prior to 2024 will not match previous publications, as rates have been recalculated, changing from 0-15 years to 0-17 years for this year's publication.